Too many university students struggle in their first year because they are left unprepared by their schools and sixth forms to face the style of university learning. Supported continuously by teachers though GCSEs and A-Levels, the complete independence of university academics often confuses students and leads to unnecessary problems in their first year.

So what exactly is the difference between pre-university and university learning, and why is it confounding students?

Pre-university examinations

Many argue that the style of A-Level and GCSE examinations is at fault, with teachers training students not to learn their subjects but pass their exams.  A common criticisms of pre-university examinations such as GCSEs and A-Levels are not only that they are being ‘dumbed-down’ year on year, but that the actually style of questioning is not ‘learning’ but ‘drilling’.

This means that students often don’t completely understand the concepts in their subject that they must explore in depth at university level, giving them a poor foundation for further study. Learning by rote has become the norm, with students often get by simply by learning quotations and regurgitating points they learned from SparkNotes. Although such superficial learning may get students past A-Levels, when it comes to university they often get a rude awakening.

Yet an important point to make is that their ill-preparedness is often not their own fault. For all the criticisms of how A-Level examinations work, students who want to achieve top grades must still work incredibly hard. The problem however is the type of work that A-Levels encourage them to do is completely at odds with the type of work that universities do.

Lectures

While group work, interactive learning and other ‘new’ classroom styles of learning are desperately in fashion in schools and sixth-forms, students are often left unprepared for traditional lecture learning. The ability to concentrate for one or two hours and simply make notes from a speaker is often lost on students who are coached through the academic careers that group work is the way to learn. Many lectures have called for teachers to incorporate more lecture-style classes into their classes, but the pleas often fall on deaf ears.

Reading

Lectures are often just brief outlines of topics that students must learn, and only scratch at the surface of all the information students must understand for their exams. The real learning at university is independent and usually comes in the form of assigned reading. Very few A-Levels involve even a fraction of the reading that a first-year humanities or social science students must undertake, leaving most students overwhelmed and lacking basic skills like scanning of texts. Students often must read multiple chapters or even entire books of difficult academic texts for seminars and tutorials, but A Levels simply do not prepare them for that level of learning.

Lack of school-led university preparation

In the US it is not uncommon for schools to hold their own classes on not only on how to apply to university but also how to succeed once you are there. Partnerships between schools and universities have led to a massive rise in high school students taking courses at local colleges, helping them earn credits for their first year in university but also giving them a taste of what exactly university demands. Such schemes do exist in the UK, but are not common enough.

Taking note from independent schools

Independent of the national curriculum and often ditching A-Levels for broader examinations such as the International Baccalaureate, independent schools often better prepare students for the rigours of university. Although it is easy to write off their achieves as being due to the fact they have larger budgets, it is not just the amount of privately educated students that get into higher education but the quality. Surveys show that in the first 3 months, students from private schools adjust easier to the hard work of university due to the fact that they are often better prepared for what universities expect by their schools.

So what’s the answer?

Schools and sixth forms are not adequately preparing all students for university, instead being forced to push hard at exam performance due to government targets at the expense of overall education. By simply utilizing lecture-style learning, encouraging more independent reading and setting up more university-preparation classes – schools can help not only get young people to university but help them flourish once they get there.

This is a guest post from contributing author Charlie Oszvald. Charlie is writing for Bales College, a private secondary school in London which offers A-level and GCSE Courses.

According to Ken Blanchard’s theory of leadership, there exist four different types of employees, each requiring a different style of leadership. Blanchard calls it “situational leadership” and its goal is to increase the frequency and quality of conversations leaders are having with their protegés. Effective leadership (and by extension, management) is not about telling employees what to do, it’s about having useful conversations that are focused on who that employee is, what tasks they’re doing exactly in the office, and what tools they may need in order to get the job done in the most effective way. The four types of employees each require a unique approach to these conversations.

The “Low Competence, High Commitment” Employee: This employee is possibly new to the workforce or returning after a long hiatus. Perhaps she has recently embarked on a career change. This employee has little on-the-job experience but also a real enthusiasm to learn and do a great job. She needs to be directed. She needs to be told what to do in plain language, including the how, the when and the why. Do not overlook basic skills like organising (the desk, the calendar, and the workload), especially if this employee does not have a formal education. Systems should be put in place for ensuring the work gets done, while also allowing the new employee to track her performance.

The “Some Competence, Low Commitment” Employee: This one is also lacking in the skills department, although he may or may not be aware of it himself. Likely he does not know what he is doing on the job and has little or no desire to actually succeed at it. Short of firing him on the spot, your best bet is to coach him, give him direction in his work and provide support for all of his daily activities. His self-esteem is low, which explains the lack of desire to succeed. He needs to be inspired from the ground up. Restore his commitment to the job by involving him in the decision-making progress. Before you invest that time, however, explain where things have gone wrong and ask for an explanation. There may be something happening in the office that you are unaware of. Something at home, perhaps. Be compassionate but lay down the law; explain that things have to change.

The “High Competence, Variable Commitment” Employee: This employee is competent but needy. He knows exactly what he is doing and he does the job spectacularly if he feels like it, but perhaps not all the time. You get glimpses of his impressive capabilities, though he does not always bother to put them in action. He must be given regular encouragement and strong support. You must recognise when he has completed a task with a certain flair and encourage a similar style of work. Communication is paramount with this one. Track his progress with precision and discuss it with him regularly.

The “High Competence, High Commitment” Employee: This employee is the main event; she’s the one every employer hopes to find and she is the reason HR teams go through six round of hiring and eight rounds of salary negotiation to get her. You can delegate freely and be confident the job will get done. She can be trusted with important projects because she delivers results consistently and on time. Don’t hover over her shoulder. Ask her what style of direction she prefers. Does she like to have daily one-on-one meetings? Does she prefer email check-ins? Would she be more productive working from home? Make sure she’s happy because she otherwise she will not stay at the job for long. Make her career development your priority.

Blanchard reminds us how important it is that employees know about your management/leadership philosophy. Rather than wondering, “Why doesn’t my boss ever contact me anymore?,” the employee should know this is a sign that you are confident in his work and understand his ability to work independently. In order for situational leadership to be effective, all employees must understand the theory. Leadership should be done with the employee and not at them.

Amy Knapp is a business blogger based in Sydney, AUS, writing regularly for InsideTrak. Educated in Law and the Fine Arts, her work champions the marriage of the creative and the corporate. Follow her on Twitter @JoyofWords.

Many new college students, and continuing students, start to feel ambitious during their years in formal education. This usually translates as them signing up for more classes than they can handle. Let’s not beat around the bush, the number one thing that keeps college students from focusing more on school is that they spend too much time in social activities. Socializing in college is actually a very important part of the overall experience. However, you aren’t paying thousands of dollars in tuition to socialize. The purpose of college is to learn skills that will help you start a productive career. Thus, you need to learn to find a balance between all of your various duties and responsibilities in your college years. However, there are some circumstances that may justify you giving up on a class (and keep in mind that pure laziness is NOT listed below):

1. It looks like you are about to fail. If you have already wasted too much time at the beginning of the semester and it looks like you may possibly fail the course if you continue, you may have the option of dropping the course. Most colleges have a specific deadline set where they allow students to “withdraw” from a course without it affecting their GPA. If you are already failing and the deadline hasn’t passed, you will still have time to withdraw safely from the course without any negative effects.
2. You are sacrificing too much sleep. Sleep is one of the most important things our bodies need to keep us healthy, just as important as eating healthy. Too many college students sacrifice this valuable commodity in order to do all the things they want/need to do. If you find yourself struggling in your classes because of lack of sleep, then you should obviously rethink whether you are wasting too much time socializing, or whether you have been too ambitious in your schedule this semester. If it’s the socializing, then you know what you have to do. If it’s because you have a heavy course load, then you may want to rethink your class schedule.
3. Your roommates tell you that you look stressed. If other people are starting to notice that you are looking particularly stressed out, then obviously you should re-evaluate your priorities and coursework. Stress can have many detrimental effects on your health. If the stress is coming from a source not involving school, you may have to sacrifice something else to make that stress go away, or you may have to sacrifice school until you have taken care of that first problem. It all depends on what your particular source of stress is.
4. The class is ridiculously boring. If you start a course and find that it’s so ridiculously boring that your head hits the desk the second you sit down, you may want to reconsider taking the course. If it’s a general credit course, you’ll have no problem finding a different subject area that may interest you. If it is a course required for you major, you may want to rethink your major. . .
5. The professor is worse than Ben Stein. Remember those commercials for Clear Eyes in which Ben Stein talked in a monotone the whole time. . . well, unfortunately, there are many real professors who speak like that. There are also many that you may just straight-up dislike. If you dread going to class because you feel like the professor has a personal vendetta against you, you may consider dropping it. Although, learning how to deal with it will probably be great for your own character development.

Tiffani Azani is a freelance writer for MyCollegesandCareers.com. My Colleges and Careers provides online tools for prospective students to help them connect with the best online colleges and earn a college degree.

Although many low-income workers seem to get stuck in their career paths, some manage to make remarkable advancements. What makes the difference? Extensive studies have been made to determine both job and personal factors influencing career advancement. While there are some unobservable factors like workplace culture and individual motivation, the studies have isolated strong credentials necessary in the job market.

Higher Education

Increases in educational achievements are almost as important as change of employment in encouraging exit from poverty, particularly if the workers have at least an associate degree. (McKernan and Ratcliffe 2002)

Any person who wants to make executive advancement needs an undergraduate degree. A graduate degree is now a major credential for career advancement, particularly in large firms in the private sector. (Harlan & Weiss 1982; Carnavale et al 1990 Roomkin 1989)

Relevant Certifications

As much as degrees are important, they are not enough in themselves. Employers are faced with many potential workers who have the same qualifications in terms of their university education. How do they choose the most suitable ones among them?

This is where career certifications come in handy. Skills certifications matter directly because they determine starting salaries. They also have an indirect significance by giving access to jobs with better opportunities for informal and formal training. (Nan Poppe, Julie Strawn, and Karin Martinson June 2003)

Making Strategic Job Changes

While people generally assume that staying with the same employer for long is good, studies have shown it is more beneficial in large firms. Advancement attained by staying steadily at one firm is directly connected to educational achievement. (Connolly and Gottschalk 2001)

Strategic job changes are associated with wage increases. However, job changes do not seem to work for every body. Workers who have little education and women benefit less from job changes. (Holzer et al 2002) Less educated workers are more likely to remain unemployed than switch jobs.

Sending the Right ‘Signals’

Executives and managers look for the appropriate ‘signals’ from their employees to determine those best suited for advancement. The most important signals are those that make the employees more visible to decision makers and prove their credibility. (Ellen D. Wernick. Preparedness, Career Advancement, and the Glass Ceiling, May 1994)

Some of these important signals include:
- Varied and broad experience in core business areas. (Morrison et al 1987)
- Access to relevant information, especially via networks and mentor assistance (Nkomo and Cox 1990)

In addition to education and early successful performance, employers look for early promotion, training programs, moving through different functional areas and initial assignment to a powerful position. Besides credibility, therefore, familiarity also plays an important role.

This guest article was contributed by Jennifer Bell from Health Training Guide. Jennifer is a freelance writer and mother of 2 based in Los Angeles, CA. Check out her site to learn more about physical therapist training and other exciting health careers.

Graduating from college only to find yourself in a job market that is steeped in recession is not a fun prospect.  And yet, if you don’t go to school and get a degree, you might as will just don a paper hat, because your options might be limited to food service.  Even the best online schools can offer you a chance at a better job, and if you pay attention to the criteria used to determine college rankings, you can almost certainly find schools that provide the best opportunities for job placement.  But even with a degree under your belt and interested companies calling you for interviews post-graduation, you may have a hard time securing a position.  So here are just a few ways you can turn the tables in your favor and walk away from college with a job in your pocket.

Take an internship

This might just be the best way to secure employment upon graduation.  Apply for any internships your department offers until you nab one, then stick with it until you get a job offer (if they’ll have you).  Of course, you may not like the job much, and they might not like you, in which case you should try for another internship.  Eventually you’re bound to find the right fit and it could just result in an offer of employment.

Get recommendations from professors

The people who prepared you to work in your chosen profession likely have some industry contacts in their rolodex.  If you can convince them to place a call on your behalf, you might just get a foot in the door.  And when you think about it, if you can’t get your professors to give you a chance, how are you going to convince a total stranger?  Just some food for thought.

Create an amazing résumé

If you’ve never done this before, don’t just assume you know what you’re doing.  The easiest option is to go on ResumeBucket and find templates that allow you to fill in the blanks with your own information.  But if you really want to impress, think about asking your major advisor, a counselor, or professors to proofread your sample résumé and make suggestions on how you can improve it.

Apply for everything and be persistent

Don’t limit yourself to one position that you think you want to hold.  The truth is that you probably have no idea of what you actually want to do because the job rec almost never matches up to the actual work you’ll be doing.  So while you should still look for the type of job you’ve been trained for, don’t hesitate to explore other options like related positions (or even related fields) and alternative employment like online freelance work.

Pay to play

Sometimes it takes money to make money.  If you’re in a field that is somewhat specialized, consider signing up for a paid industry job-search website or forum that offers job opportunities only to members (as in exclusive postings for positions).  Try signing up for a month and applying for tons of jobs to see if you get any nibbles.  Once you’ve secured employment you can cancel your membership (you can also write it off on your taxes!).

In today’s economy, you may have to begin several paths of education. Depending on what type of work you do, the skills that you use today may be obsolete five years from now. If you fail to change with the times and keep yourself up to date with what’s happening in your industry, you’ll be left behind. This can be a scary subject for people to deal with, but there are ways to avoid becoming a “dinosaur.” In this article, you’ll learn about the benefits of an online education, and how it can help you in your career.

Acquiring a New Skill

The reason that you’re able to hold a job is because you have certain skills that are valuable to your employer. A programmer needs to be able to understand “languages” to create software. Even a doctor needs to stay educated to learn new medical procedures and treatment options. With an online education, you can take specific classes so that you can learn new skills and receive feedback from your instructors. People who take advantage of these educational opportunities are more likely to hold onto their jobs in tough times.

Earning a Promotion

There are many factors that employers look at when deciding on who they’ll promote. They must look at past job performance, attitude, ability to work with other people, etc. If you ask for a promotion and show your boss that you’ve enrolled in a class to improve your performance, you’ll probably be taken more seriously as a candidate for a higher position. This shows that you’re a true professional and will do what you can to add value to your company. Your company may even pay for or reimburse you the costs of an online class that is relevant to their business needs.

Increasing Management Skills

The ability to manage people is a skill unto itself, and it requires specialized training and continual practice. If you’re looking to become a manager in your company, you may want to enroll in a business management program online. It doesn’t necessarily have to be a full degree program – it could simply be a small number of classes you take to improve your management skills. Many online education providers offer these types of programs, and you could be eligible to earn a certificate in this area of study. This could be exactly what you need to climb into a management position.

Training for a New Career

While the previous paragraphs have applied to people working to improve their skills in their current careers, you may be in a position where you want to change your career completely. If this is the case, you can always begin taking online classes in the subject area that you’d like to work in. The benefit of an online education is that you can work around your current work schedule; you don’t have to quit your job and dedicate the next four years of your life solely to school. The great thing is that you can take the classes during the time of day that’s right for you.

Networking with Classmates

When most people think of networking, they think of it in a professional setting, not in an educational setting. Many online classes now include group projects, in which you work with a small group of classmates to complete assignments. This could provide with you a great opportunity to network with fellow students and build relationships. Sometimes it takes just one good connection to land a great job, and this could be your chance. Make sure to build real relationships with these people and help them in any way that you can. They’ll be happy to return the favor when the time comes!

Be sure to do your research on the school, its accreditation, even try to connect with alumni for their input. Realize online testimonials or gripes can be slanted, so look for real input. Make certain any higher institutions you plan to attend give full credit for courses from the online school you decide upon.

Mickey Anderson is a career counselor and content contributor to various career sites. With the health field opening up recently, he recommends getting your “foot in the door” with a CNA certification. Check out CNA jobs to get an idea of career paths available for this profession.